Spring-grip dumb-bell.



Patntedl Dec. l2, 1916.

SPRING-emr Dunn-BELL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916..

V.Application led February 18, 1916. Serial No. 79,082.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS GRAHAM LEwIs, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and resident of 42 Berners street, London, W., England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Spring-Grip Dumb- Bells, of which the following is a specification.

The user of spring-grip dumb-bells has hitherto been liable, through inattention, to fail of obtaining the full benefit which should result from the exercise which such appliances are designed to afford; the reason for such failure being that the user, through finding it difficult to recognize the precise instant at which his grip becomes fully closed, is apt to stop short of completely compressing the springs `or other elastic resistance to the closure of the grip.

rlhe object of the present invention is to overcome the difliculty referred to, by insuring that the user shall receive notification of the fact when his grip is closedto the fullest extent; and for this purpose, according to the invention, a spring-grip dumbbell is provided with means for giving an auditory or a tactual signal, or both an auditory and a tactual signal, at or about the moment when, in use, the dumb-bell. springs attain their condition of fullest compression.

If desired, provision may be made whereby a similar signal or signals may be given on the grip, after complete closure, being relaxed to a slight extent; such provision enabling the user, as a result of the warning which he thus receives, to at once tighten again the grasp which has inadvertently become relaxed.

In one form of the invention, what may be called the signaling device comprises a spring-jumper and means for alternately compressing the spring and permitting its sudden release at the required moment or moments. Thus, for example, one half of the dumb-bell may carry a leaf-spring which extends toward the other or second half and has its outer or free end bent so that, as the two halves of the dumb-bell approach one another, thisfree endof the leafspring is gradually forced aside by contact i with an obstruction 'constituted or carried by the second half of the dumb-bell until, at or just before the moment when the dumbbell becomes fully closed, the end of the leaf-spring passes beyond and thus suddenly escapes from conta-ct with the obstruction, and in so doing strikes against some partso as t0 cause the emission of a clicking sound and at the same time communicates a slight shock or vibration to the hand of the user. v

It will'be evident that by means of a construction such that the free end of the jumper shall first encounter and then escape from an obstruction not only upon or immediately before the attainment by the halves of the dumb-bell of their position of nearest mutual approach, but also immediately after they begin to recede from the that position, the click and shock above mentioned will be given as Soon as any appreciable relaxation occurs in the users grip of the Adumb-bell, so that, if such relaxation has resulted from vinadvertence, the user will receive warning that he should again tighten his grasp.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate a convenient construction adapted to afford asignal bothon the occurrence of com plete closure of the grip and also as soon as, thereafter, appreciable relaxation of the grip takes place, Figure 1 is a sctional side elevation of one end of a spring-grip dumb-bell, to which the invention is applied, with the halves of the dumb-bell separated to their fullesty extent;` the section being taken on line 1 1 of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is an end view of the dumb-bell, the halves being in the position shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an outside elevation of the portion of the 'dumb-bell shown in Fig. 1, the halves occupying theposition of nearest mutual approach. Fig. '4c is a view similar to Fig. 3, the halves of the dumb-bell being slightly farther apart than in the latter gure.

Each half A and B of the spring-grip dumb-,bell comprises a middle or handle portiony 11 and a. pair of heavier T-headed end portions 12, the end portion 12 at only one extremity ofeach half of the dumb-bell being shown for the sake of convenience. The halves A. andB are held apart from one another by coiled springs interposed between them, two such springs, 13 and 14, being shown, whereof 13 is interposed between the handle portions 11 of the respective halves and 14k between the end portions 12. The relative movement of the halves is guided at each end by a stud 15 screwed into the end portion 12 of the half A. and passing axially through the spring 14 and through a hole provided at 16 in the end portion 12 of the half B, while the maximum distance apart of the halves is determined by a head 17 on the stud 15 encountering a shoulder at the bottom of a countersunk recess 13 at the outer end of the hole 16.

The signaling device comprises a spring jumper 19 carried by the half A, and a catch 20 carried by the half B and adapted to present a temporary obstruction in the path of the juin er 19 during both the approach and the separation of the respective halves toward and from one another.

in the example illustrated, the jumper 19 consists of a leaf-spring :mounted upon the stud 15 close to the half A, for which purpose the jumper 19 has al hole to enable it to be threaded upon the stud between two adjacent convolutions of the spring 1A so as to be retained by the pressure of the latter in position, just clear of the inner face 21 of the half A, against a ring 22 also threaded upon the stud 15 between the jumper and the face 21. The flat leaf-spring forming the jumper 19 extends from the stud 15 outward between the halves A and B in the direction of the adjacent extremity of the dumb-bell, and its free end portion is bent as indicated so as to present an inwardly re-curved nib 23 adapted, when the halves A and B are pressed toward one another, but before they have attained their position of nearest mutual approach, to encounter the inner face 242 of the half B close to the outer extremity of the latter.

The catch 20 consists, in the example illustrated, of a T-head on the end of a stud which is screwed into the end portion 12 of the half B so as to project beyond the end-surface 25 of the latter at a short distance from the face 2li, the catch 2O extending transversely of the path of the nib 23 during the yapproach and the separation of the halves toward and from one another.

ln operation, when the halves A and B of the dumb-bell are forced toward one another, but before they have attained their position of nearest mutual approach, the nib 23 will first encounter the inner face 2A of the half B and thereafter, while yielding in the outward direction, will cause the spring to be flexed until the nib, by escaping from the face 24, will allow the spring-jumper to recoil suddenly so as to cause the nib 23 to strike against the inner face of the catch 20, causing the production of a sharp, clicking sound and the communication of a slight shock to the hand of the user. On the halves lA and B being forced still farther toward one another, the nib 23 will again yield in the outward direction so as first to ride over the edge of the catch 2O and thereafter to strike, in consequence of the successive iexure and recoil of the spring jumper, against the end face 25 of the dumb-bell at the outer side of the catch, against causing the production of a clicking sound and the communication of a slight shock to the hand; these last results occurring simultaneously with the attainment by the halves A and B of their position of nearest mutual approach, or in other words, simultaneously with the attainment by the springs 13 and 111 of their condition of fullest compression.

0n the grip of the hand being slightly relaxed (which may happen unconsciously to the user) so that the halves A and B recede from one another under the pressure of the springs 13 and 14, the nib 23 will encounter the outer face of the catch 20 and will yield in the outward direction so as first to ride over the edge of the catch and thereafter to strike, in consequence of the successive fiexure and recoil of the spring jumper, against the end face 25 of the dumb-bell at the inner side of the catch, causing as before the production of a clicking sound and the communication to the hand of a slight shock, so that the user will become aware that his grip has been relaxed.

A construction similar to that illustrated may be provided at the opposite end of thc dumb-bell if desired.

It will be obvious that the effects above described, as regards both sound and shock, may be brought about by various arrangements of signaling device, the construction and mode of operation set forth being given merely by way of example.

What I claim is 1. The combination with a spring dumbbell, of means for giving a signal both on the occurrence of complete closure of the grip and also as soon as, thereafter, appreciable relaxation of the grip takes place.

2. The combination with a dumb-bell having resiliently extended members, of a signaling device comprisinga spring member carried by one member of the dumb-bell, and means carried by the other member of the dumb-bell in position to present an obstruction in the path of the spring member upon the approach and separation of the dumbbell members beyond respective certain points,

3. The combination with a spring dumbbell, of a signaling device comprising members carried by the parts of the dumb-bell and adapted to coperate with each other in giving a signal both upon the approach of the parts of the dumb-bell beyond a certain point, and the separation of the parts of the dumb-bell beyond a certain point.

4. The combination with a spring-grip dumb-bell, of a signaling device comprising a spring member carried by one member of the dumb-bell, and a catch on the other member of the dumb-bell and with which the spring member is adapted to engage.

5. The combination with a spring grip dumb-bell, of a signaling device comprising movement of the said members, of a signal 10 a spring carried by one member of the dumbcomprising a leaf spring mounted upon the bell and having a curved nib, and a headed said pin adjacent one of the members of the stud on the other member` of the dumb-bell dumb-bell and having a curved nib, and a and With which the nib of the spring is headed stud projecting from the end poradapted to engage. v tion of the other member of the dumb-bell 15 6. The combination With a dumb-bell and With which the nib of the spring is formed of two members, a spring interposed adapted to engage.

between the members, and a pin guiding the LOUIS GRAHAM LEWIS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained lfor ve cents each. by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

